Production of tequila from agave 225

Chapter 15
Production of tequila from agave: historical influences
and contemporary processes
M. Cedeo Cruz and J. Alvarez-Jacobs
Tequila Herradura, S.A. de C.V. Ex-Hda San Jose del Refugio, Amatitn, Jalisco,
Mxico

Introduction: Agave beverage alcohol

products
Tequila is classically associated with Mexico,
particularly with Jalisco, a state located in the west
of the country. This beverage is obtained by
distillation of fermented juice from only the agave
plant (Agave tequilana Weber var. Azul ) if 100%
agave tequila is required. Fermentation is carried
out by inoculated strains of Saccharomyces
cerevisiae or in some cases by a spontaneous
process. Up to 49% (w/v) sugars may come
from a source other than agave, usually sugar
cane or corn syrup, if 100% agave tequila is not
required. This tequila could not be labeled as
100% agave tequila.
Different kinds of tequila are produced in 50
registered companies in Jalisco. The tequila
products made by these companies differ mainly
in proportions of agave used, production
processes, microorganisms used in the
fermentation, distillation equipment used and the
maturation and aging times. The product known
as silver or white tequila must be distilled to a
concentration not exceeding 55% alcohol in
volume (v/v) and not less than 38% (v/v) from a
fermented wort containing not less than 51%
sugars from the agave plant. Gold tequila is the

white product to which caramel color (generally)

has been added. Rested tequila (Reposado) and
aged tequila (Aejo) are white tequila matured
in wood containers, preferably oak casks, for at
least 2 and 12 months, respectively, according
to present regulations. In practice, the aging
period is normally longer and depends on the
characteristics each company wants to give to
the final product. The products known as 100%
agave, which are becoming more popular, could
be white, rested or aged and are distilled from
fermented wort with only agave as a source of
sugars. The labels of these products must indicate
that they were obtained using only agave and
under Mexican government supervision.
Tequila is differentiated from the beverage
known as mezcal by the type of agave used in
its elaboration. Mezcal is made from Agave
potatorum, which grows in the state of Oaxaca.
Most mezcal producers use a rudimentary
fermentation and distillation process (Snchez,
1991). There is no technical reason for, or any
improvement in the organoleptic characteristics
from, the worm inside the bottles of some mezcal
brands. The worm is primarily a commercial ploy.
Worms are grown in agave plants and introduced
manually in the bottling line.

226 M. Cedeo Cruz and J. Alvarez-Jacobs

Pulque is another beverage obtained by
fermentation of the juice obtained from several
species of agave, A. atrovirens and A. salmiana
among others, by a complex succession of yeast
and bacteria that produce ethanol, a diversity of
chemical compounds, and some polymers that
give a sticky consistency to the final product
(Rzedowski, 1978; Snchez Marroquin and
Hope, 1953). Pulque is sometimes mixed with
fruits or vegetables, but has poor stability as it is
neither distilled nor pasteurized.
Agave plants still serve as food in some states
of Mxico; and other fermented regional
beverages are produced (e.g., Sotol in the state
of Chihuahua and Bacanora in the state of
Sonora), but only tequila and more recently
mezcal have reached international recognition.
Another difference between tequila and mezcal
and all other regional drinks is that both are
subject to an official standard that for tequila is
NOM006-SCFI-1993 (Secofi, 1993), and
production is supervised by the Mexican
government.

Origin and history of tequila

The word tequila is believed to originate from
the tribe of ticuilas who long ago inhabited the
hillside of a volcano bearing the same name
located near the city of Tequila. Another possible
origin is the Nahuatl word tequitl, which means
work or employment, and the word tlan, which
means place. Therefore tequila would mean
place in which labor or work is done.
The most ancient information revealing the
existence of agave and its different uses is from
the era before the Spaniards in several codices
preserved to the present time (a codex, from
the Latin codex meaning board or writing tablet,
is a manuscript volume, especially of a classic
work or scripture). The most important is the
Tonalmatlnahuatl codex, which notes that certain
tribes had learned to cook agave plants and used
them as food and to compensate for the lack of
water in desert lands. Also, these tribes
discovered that cooked agave when soaked in

water would ferment, producing a very

appreciated beverage. In fact, this primitive and
rudimentary method was used for centuries to
produce beverages from agave, considered a
sacred plant possessing divine properties. In
other codices, such as Nutall, Laud, Borgia and
Florentine, there are many references to uses
of the agave plant for soap manufacture, a
source of fiber, footwear, medicine and sewing
needles as well as thread, paper and rope. In
fact, Indians could distinguish the different species
of agave by color, size, stem, leaf width and the
different uses given each plant (Muria, 1990).
The great religious importance of agave was
apparent in those codices, as only warriors and
priests used fermented drinks in ritual ceremonies.
In prehispanic Mxico the general name for
all species of agave (or mezcal as it is also known)
was Metl, which is a representation of the
goddess Mayahuel. The alcoholic drink produced
was called Iztac octli (white wine). The first
Spaniards to arrive in Mxico referred to the
plant as maguey, a name used for an identical
plant they had seen in the Caribbean Islands,
where they first encountered new world plants
and animal life (Bottorff, 1971). It was not until
arrival of the Spaniards, who brought knowledge
of distillation techniques, that tequila took its
present form (Goncalves, 1956).
There are only two main regions for tequila
production in Mxico. The oldest, the TequilaAmatitn region that comprises the Amatitn
village, developed at the end of the seventeenth
century. The second region, the Jalisco Highlands, appeared in the last decade of the 19th
century (Luna, 1991). The first tequila production
process with a commercial purpose was
established in the city of Tequila around the end
of the 18th century. The main consumers were
in the mining zones located in the state of Jalisco.
The Spaniards tried to suppress consump-tion
of tequila in order to reduce competition for
brandy and other wines imported from Spain
with a decree signed by Carlos III forbidding its
sale and production under the pretext that its
consumption was the cause of several illnesses.

Production of tequila from agave 227

The results were negative. The governor of the
region later issued a decree imposing a tax on
tequila in order to enrich the royal coffers, thus
permitting its sale in all of New Spain. By the end
of the 19th century, expansion of the tequila
industry, helped by the railway, was evident.
However it was not until the first casks were
exported to the US that tequila was known
beyond Mxicos borders.

The Agave plant

According to Granados (1985), the genus Agave,
which means noble in Greek, was defined by
Linneaus in 1753 when he described the plant
A. americana as the first agave species known
to science. Agave plants, which are often
confused with cacti, belong to the family
Agavaceae and are succulent plants with spirallyarranged leaves forming a rosette. Some have
definite trunks, but more often they are nearly
stemless. The leaves are bluish green in color,
over 1 m long in mature plants, and end in a
sharpened brown thorn. As Backman (1944)
pointed out, the widespread distribution of some
300 species, combined with the fact that the
plants require approximately 8-12 years to mature
and hybridize very easily, make the taxonomic
and phylogenetic study of the genus Agave
extremely complicated and very difficult. The
family Agavaceae includes 20 genera and nearly
300 species. Of these, around 200 are found in
Mxico.
Several agave species are important from an
economic point of view. Fiber derived from A.
foucroydes, grown in the state of Yucatn, is
known worldwide for its use in producing ropes
and carpet. More recently, the pulp remaining
after removal of the fiber has found use in animal
feed. A. salmiana and A. atrovirens are valued
for pulque production and A. potatorum for
mezcal production. Finally, A. tequilana Weber
var. Azul, named around 1900 by the German
botanist Weber (Diguet, 1902), is used to
produce tequila.

Cultivation and harvest

The blue agave, as it is known, is the only species
out of hundreds of Agavaceae with the
appropriate characteristics for tequila production.
These include a high inulin concentration, low
fiber content and the chemical compounds
present in the plant that contribute to the final
taste and flavor of tequila to give the beverage
its particular character. Some have attempted to
produce tequila in other states with other agave
species, but without success. The blue agave is
cultivated in the state of Jalisco in the two regions
with the right climate and soil composition for
its growth, namely the Highlands and the TequilaAmatitn region. The temperature conditions for
good agave yields are a minimum of 30C, an
optimum of 260C and maximum of 47C. Soil
should be fertile but not very deep, 30 to 40 cm.
Good drainage is required to avoid effects of
flooding, which are very harmful for
development of the agave. The plants must be
planted at 800 to 1700 m above sea level where
the annual rainfall is about 800 to 900 mm. The
correct planting time is immediately before the
rainy season, from June to September, so that
the plants do not suffer from water stress during
the first year of growth.
Propagation is accomplished by the
vegetative route in agave. Sexual reproduction
via seeds is not usual. Asexual bulbils develop in
the inflorescence at the base of the flowers,
producing small plants that after some time
detach themselves from the floral peduncle and
fall to the soil where they root. Another mode
of asexual propagation is by suckers, which are
a characteristic type of lateral bud or branch
developing at the base of the main stem. Plants
developing near each mother plant are
separated at the age of 3-4 years. These baby
plants are called first-class seed because they
are better and healthier (Snchez, 1991). In
practice, people use the word seed to refer to
such young plants, but from a botanical point of
view these are rhizome shoots or suckers
(Valenzuela, 1992). Plant cell culture is used

228 M. Cedeo Cruz and J. Alvarez-Jacobs

experimentally by some agave producers, but is
not being used commercially due to unavailability
of trained technicians and laboratory facilities to
small agave producers. Some developments are
being carried out to improve agave plants, or to
obtain plants resistant to pests; and these new
plants will be ready in the next two years (CIATE,
1993).
Land for agave cultivation must be cleared
and deep-ploughed, sometimes twice. Agave is
planted approximately 2-4 m apart in straight lines
called ruts. Sowing is done by hand in holes 15
cm in depth. Plant density is around 2000-4000
plants per hectare, depending on the plantation
system used; and yields can be between 30,000
and 200,000 kg/ha, assuming that the weight of
a harvested plant varies from 15 to 50 kg. This
variation is caused by differences in soil
conditions, quality of plants sown, rainfall, pests
and fertilization. Sometimes agave is sown
intercalated with nitrogen-fixing crops such as
peanuts, beans, chickpeas or soybeans. After the
agave has been in the soil for a year, visual
inspection is carried out to replace sick or dead
plants with new ones. This operation is called reseeding. The percentage of dead plants depends
on soil and plant characteristics, but is generally
from 8 to 15% (Prez, 1990).
Agaves regularly host borer insects that live
in the stems, leaves and fruits during the larval
stage. These include butterflies of the family
Megathymidae and moths of the family Prodoxidae. Also, the fungi Diplodia theo-bromae and
Colletotrichum agavae may cause serious
damage to agave leaves (Halffter, 1975; Agricultural Research Service, 1972).
Ehrler (1967) discovered that unlike stomata
in most plants, agave stomata close during the
day and open by night. This prevents loss of
water through transpiration during hot daylight
hours, although it results in a hotter leaf surface
than most plants could tolerate. The thick cuticle
overlying the epidermis, which is quite evident
in tequila agave, apparently prevents damage to
the leaf from high temperature. This waxy cuticle
produces turbidity in tequila because it dissolves
in the distillation step and produces a haze in

the final product when it is diluted or cooled.

One way to avoid this is to treat tequila with
activated charcoal and to filter it through pure
cellulose filter pads. This, unfortunately, results
in the loss of some aromas.
Agave fertilization is based on soil
composition, plant age, and the type of chemical
compound used. The normal procedure is to use
urea as a nitrogen source in amounts of 30-70 g
per plant added directly into the soil. In some
areas, phosphorus and potassium fertilization is
also required. As some agave regions are also
involved in cattle, swine, and chicken breeding,
manure is sometimes employed for fertilization
(GEA, 1992).
The average maturity time for agave is 10
years. Every year following planting, fields are
cultivated to loosen the soil and weed and pest
control is carried out. Each plant matures
individually. Harvest begins at eight years. The
leaves are cut from the base and left in the field
to recycle nutrients. The harvested plants free
of leaves look like large pineapples and weigh
from 20 to 90 kg. They are transported to the
distillery. Only the better plants, meaning those
of good size and high inulin content (measured
as reducing sugars) are harvested; but on the
12th year, all plants remaining (the weakest
plants) are cut. These are called drag and are
generally discarded. Agave composition varies
seasonally, but an average would be (wet basis)
27% (w/w) reducing sugars, a juice content of
0.572 ml/g and a pH of 5.2.

Tequila production
Tequilas differ greatly depending on agave quality
and origin (Highlands or Tequila-Amatitn
regions). The production process also strongly
influences quality of the final product. Some
distilleries still employ rudimentary production
methods, just as they did several decades ago
(Pla and Tapia, 1990). Most companies, however,
employ technological advances that improve
process efficiency and consistency; and some
have implemented a ISO-9000 standard. What-

Production of tequila from agave 229

ever processes are used, tequila manufacture
comprises four main steps: cooking, milling,
fermentation and distillation.
Processing harvesting agave
Agave is transported from the fields to the
factories as soon as possible to avoid weight
losses, because today most distilleries pay by
weight and not by inulin content. The heads are
unloaded from the truck in the receiving area of
the factory and must be protected from the sun
and rain in order to avoid withering and fungal
growth. Although the agave has already been
inspected during growth and at harvest, it is
examined again to reject visually unacceptable
plants or those damaged by pests. At this point,
a representative sample of agave is taken for
laboratory analysis. Modified AOAC (1990)
procedures are used to determine reducing
sugar content (after acid hydrolysis of inulin)
along with pH, moisture, dry weight, juice and
ash content.
Agave heads usually weigh between 20 and
60 kg, although some can reach 100 kg. They
are cut to sizes that facilitate uniform cooking
and handling. Different agave cutting systems
exist, but the use of axes and a specialized tool
called coa are the most popular. The heads are
cut in halves or quarters, depending on the
weight, and the pieces are arranged manually in
an oven or autoclave. Band saws can also be
used to cut the agave heads. Band saws are faster
and less labor-intensive than the manual
procedure, but the belts break frequently because
of the resinous consistency of agave. Some
factories tear uncooked agave first with a knife
and place the resulting pieces mixed with water
into autoclaves to be cooked.
Other raw materials for tequila production
When producing 100% agave tequila, the only
source of carbohydrate is the inulin hydrolyzed
from agave in the cooking step. For other kinds

of tequila the law permits the use of other sugars

in amounts of up to 49% by weight in wort
formulation. There are no legal specifications
regarding the type of adjunct sugar sources to
be used in tequila manufacture; and theoretically
any kind of fermentable sugar can be used for
the formulation of wort. In practice and from an
economical point of view, only cane sugar,
Piloncillo, cane molasses and acid- or enzymehydrolyzed corn syrup are employed. Cane
sugar is received in 50 kg bags and stored in a
dry, cool place for subsequent utilization.
Piloncillo consists of brown cones of crystallized
complete cane juice, sometimes individually
wrapped in corn or cane leaves and packed in
sacks. Cane molasses is also used but it is difficult
to handle and there is risk of spoilage over a
long storage period. Acid- or enzymehydrolyzed corn syrup may be used to formulate
the wort. All sugars used in wort formulation are
routinely analyzed by measuring solids content
and reducing and fermentable sugar content.

The cooking step: hydrolysis of inulin

Cooking the agave serves three purposes. First,
the low pH (4.5) together with the high
temperature hydrolyze inulin and other components of the plant. The correct composition of
these compounds is still unknown. In addition,
cooked agave has a soft consistency that
facilitates the milling operation.
In the pre-Hispanic era, agave cooking was
carried out in holes filled with stones heated
using wood for fuel. The stones retained the heat
for the time needed to cook the agave.
Nowadays some distillers have replaced the
stuffed stone holes with brick ovens and heating
is conducted by steam injection after the cut,
raw agave has been introduced into the oven.
Oven cooking is slow, and steam injection lasts
around 36-48 hrs to obtain temperatures of 100
0
C. After that period, the steam is shut off and
the agave is left in the oven for a further two
days to complete the cooking process. During
this step, a sweet liquid called cooking honey

230 M. Cedeo Cruz and J. Alvarez-Jacobs

is collected and used later as a source of free
sugars, mainly fructose. Also during this step
some of the sugars are caramelized; and some
of the compounds that contribute significantly
to the aroma and flavor in wort formulation are
due to its high content of fermentable sugars
(>10% w/v). Finally, the oven door is opened to
allow the cooked agave to cool. The agave is
then ready for milling.
In most distilleries brick ovens have been
replaced by steel autoclaves. Autoclaves have
superior efficiency and allow good pressure and
temperature control, enabling a homogeneous
and economic cooking. In a typical autoclave
cooking operation, steam is injected for 1 hr so
that the condensed steam washes the agave. This
condensed liquid is called bitter honey and is
discarded because it contains waxes from the
agave cuticle and has a low sugar content (<1 %
w/w). Steam is injected for an additional 6 hrs to
obtain a pressure of 1.2 kg/cm2 and a temperature of 121 C. At the end of that time the
agave remains in the autoclave for another 6 hrs
without additional steam, cooking slowly in the
remaining heat. This step produces a syrup with
a high sugar concentration (>10% by weight)
that is later used to formulate the initial wort. To
calculate the yield and efficiency of this step, the
amount of cooking honey and its reducing sugar
content as well as the cooked agave are
measured.
The main difference between autoclaved and
oven-baked agave is that careful control of
cooking time, temperature and steam pressure
must be maintained in autoclaves to prevent
overcooking or burning the agave. Overcooking
gives a smoky taste to the tequila, increases the
concentration of furfural in the final product and
reduces ethanol yield due to the caramelization
of some of the fermentable agave sugars. This is
why some factories with both cooking systems
reserve the ovens for their better-quality
products. Although it is easier to obtain wellcooked agave in an oven than in an autoclave,
there is no difference in terms of flavor and
fermentability between agave cooked in
autoclaves or in ovens if both are correctly
controlled.

Extraction of agave juice: milling

Milling has gone through three historical stages.
In ancient days cooked agave was crushed with
wood or steel mallets to extract the juice. Later,
a rudimentary mill consisting of a large circular
stone 1.3 m in diameter and 50 cm thick was
used. Driven by animals, the stone turned in a
circular pit containing cooked agave and
extracted the juice. The resulting juice was
collected by hand in wood basins and carried to
fermentation tanks. By the 1950s modern
systems were implemented in which cooked
agave was passed through a cutter to be
shredded (except in factories that did this
operation before cooking); and with a combination of milling and water extraction, sugars
were extracted. The mills used for agave are
similar to those used in the sugarcane industry
but are smaller in size (normally 50 cm wide).
This system is still employed in most distilleries.
Juice obtained in milling is mixed with the
syrup obtained in the cooking step and with a
solution of sugars, normally from sugarcane (if
the tequila to be produced is not 100% agave),
and finally pumped into a fermenter. Although
the amount of sugar employed as an adjunct is
regulated by law and must be less than 49% by
weight at the beginning of the fermentation, each
factory has its own formulation.
The milling step generates a by-product called
bagasse, which represents about 40% of the total
weight of the milled agave on a wet weight basis.
Bagasse composition (dry weight basis) is 43%
cellulose, 19% hemicellulose, 15% lignin, 3%
total nitrogen, 1% pectin, 10% residual sugars
and 9% other compounds. The bagasse, mixed
with clay, is used to make bricks; but it is also the
subject of research to find alternative uses.
Examples are use of bagasse as an animal feed
or as a substrate on which to grow edible fungi.
Attempts are also underway to recover its
components (cellulose, hemicellulose and
pectin) using high-efficiency thermochemical
reactors (Alonso et al., 1993), to obtain furfurals,
make particle board, or enzymes (cellulase and
pectinase). Many of these projects are at the

Production of tequila from agave 231

laboratory stage, and there is not enough
information to evaluate feasibility.
In milling, as in all steps of the tequila process,
a sugar balance is computed to determine the
yield. If the yield decreases, the extraction
pressure in the mill and the water/agave ratio
are increased to improve efficiency.

Fermentation
Wort formulation
To produce 100% agave tequila, only agave may
be used and the initial sugar concentration ranges
from 4 to 10% w/v, depending on the amount
of water added in milling. When other sugars
are employed, they are previously dissolved and
mixed with agave juice to obtain an initial sugar
concentration of 8-16%, depending on sugar
tolerance of the yeast strain. Wort formulation
in most of the distilleries is based solely on
previous experience. A few distilleries base wort
formulation on composition of raw materials and
nutritional requirements for yeast growth and
fermentation. In these distilleries response
surface methodology is the preferred method
to optimize nutrient concentrations, using fermentation efficiencies and the taste of the resulting
tequila as responses (Montgomery, 1984). To
complement nutritional deficiencies of agave
juice and sugars employed in the growth and
fermentation steps, urea, ammonium sulfate,
ammonium phosphate or magnesium sulfate
could be added. Because the pH of the agave
juice is around 4.5, there is no need for
adjustment and the same wort composition is
used for both inoculum growth and fermentation.
Yeasts
Some companies do not inoculate a specific
strain of S. cerevisiae and instead allow natural
fermentation to proceed. Others inoculate the
wort with fresh packages of bakers yeast or a
commercial dried yeast to obtain initial

populations of 20-50 x 106 cells/ml. The dried

yeasts were originally prepared for wine, beer,
whisky or bread production; and sometimes the
quality of the tequila obtained using these yeasts
is not satisfactory, with large variations in flavor
and aroma. To achieve high yields and maintain
a constant quality in their tequila, some
companies have been using yeast strains isolated
from a natural fermentation of cooked agave
juice. Nutrients are added; along with special
conditions such as a high sugar concentration
or temperature. These isolated and selected
yeast strains have been deposited in national
microbial culture collections, the most important
being the Biotechnology and Bioengineering
Department Culture Collection of CINVESTAVIPN, located In Mxico City.
Inoculum growth
When an inoculum is used, it is grown in the
laboratory from a pure culture of a strain of S.
cerevisiae maintained on agar slants in lyophilized
form or frozen in liquid nitrogen. All laboratory
propagation is carried out under aseptic
conditions using a culture medium with the same
ingredients used in the normal process but
enriched to promote cellular growth. The
inoculum is scaled-up with continuous aeration
to produce enough volume to inoculate
fermentation tanks at 10% of the final volume.
Populations of 200-300 x 106 cells/ml are normally achieved. Strict cleanliness is maintained in
this step as bacterial contamination is highly
undesirable. When contamination is detected,
antibiotics or ammonium bifluoride are used as
antimicrobial agents. Once an inoculum is grown,
it is maintained by mixing 10% of the volume of
an active culture with fresh agave juice and
nutrients. Although inoculation with commercial
yeast greatly improves yield and turnover time,
some companies prefer a more complex (in
terms of the microbial diversity) fermentation.
While yields might be lower and turnover time
higher, the range of microorganism produces
more compounds contributing to a more

232 M. Cedeo Cruz and J. Alvarez-Jacobs

flavored tequila. It is also important to recognize
that a change in taste and flavor could negatively
affect the market for a particular brand of tequila.
Fermentation of agave wort
Once a wort is formulated with the required
nutrients and temperature is around 30 oC, it may
be inoculated with 5 to 10% (volume) of a
previously grown S. cerevisiae culture with a
population of 100-200 million cells/ml.
Otherwise, microorganisms present in the wort
carry out the fermentation. If an inoculum is not
added, the fermentation could last as long as
seven days. With an inoculum the fermentation
time ranges from 20 hrs in the faster process to
three days in the slower one.
Production of ethyl alcohol by yeast is
associated with formation of many fermentation
compounds that contribute to the final flavor of
the tequila. These are organoleptic compounds
or their precursors produced either in
subsequent maturation of the wort before it goes
to the distillation step, in the distillation process,
or in the barrels if tequila is aged. The factors
influencing formation of the organoleptic
compounds in alcoholic beverages have been
reviewed by many authors (Engan, 1981; Berry,
1984; McDonald et al., 1984; Ramsay and Berry,
1984; Geiger and Piendl, 1976). Experience in
the tequila industry is that the amount of
organoleptic compounds produced is lower in
fast fermentations than in slow fermentations. As
a consequence, the flavor and general quality of
tequila obtained from worts fermented slowly is
best. The rate of fermentation depends mainly
on the yeast strain used, medium composition
and operating conditions. The wort sugar content
decreases from an initial value of 4-11% to 0.4%
(w/v) reducing sugars if an efficient yeast strain
is employed. Otherwise, the residual sugar
content could be higher, increasing the production costs.
Fermentation vessels vary considerably in
volume, depending on the distillery. Their
capacity ranges from 12,000 liters for small tanks

to 150,000 liters for the largest ones; and they

are constructed of stainless steel in order to resist
the acidity of the wort. Ethanol production can
be detected almost from the onset; and a pH
drop from 4.5 to 3.9 is characteristic of the
fermentation. The alcohol content at the end of
fermentation lies between 4 and 9% v/v,
depending on the initial sugar concentration.
Alcohol losses may be significant because many
fermentation tanks are open, allowing
evaporation of alcohol with carbon dioxide.
Some of the largest distilleries have a cooling
system that keeps fermentation temperature
within a tolerable range for yeast, but small
producers do not have these systems. The
fermentation temperature can exceed 40 oC,
causing the fermentation to stop with an
accompanying loss of ethanol and flavors that
consequently decreases yields and affects the
quality of the tequila. Fermentations carried out
with pure agave juice tend to foam, sometimes
requiring the addition of silicones. In worts with
added sugars, foaming is usually not a problem.
Non-aseptic conditions are employed in
fermentation, and in consequence bacterial
activity may increase. The size of the bacterial
flora depends on a number of factors including
the extent to which bacteria grow during yeast
propagation (if used), the abundance of bacteria
on the raw materials and hygiene standards in
the distillery. There is no doubt that the activity
of these bacteria contributes to the organoleptic
characteristics of the final product. Occasionally,
the size of the bacterial population in fermenting
wort may become too large (>20 x 106 cells/
ml), in which case the bacteria use the sugars,
decreasing ethanol yields and sometimes
excreting undesirable compounds. The same
compounds used in the propagation step may
be used here to decrease common bacterial
contaminants found in tequila worts. Lactobacillus,
Streptococcus, Leuconostoc, and Pediococcus
are the most common contaminants, but Acetobacter may be found in fermented worts that are
left inactive for a long time prior to distillation.
In contrast to other distilled beverages, the
organoleptic characteristics of tequila come from

Production of tequila from agave 233

the raw material (cooked agave) as well as from
the fermentation process. In most of the
processes used in the tequila industry,
fermentation is spontaneous with the participation of microorganisms from the environment,
mostly yeasts and a few bacteria. This peculiarity
brings about a wide variety of compositions and
organoleptic properties. However, the special
characteristics of the wort make it a selective
medium for the growth of certain kind of yeasts
such as Saccharomyces and to a lesser extent,
acetic and lactic bacteria. In experiments isolating
microbial flora from musts of various origins,
different microorganisms were isolated. In most
cases, this difference in flora is responsible for
the wide variety of organoleptic characteristics
of tequila brands (Pinal, 1999). Where a single
purified strain is used, the final flavor and aroma
are more neutral since the bouquet created by
the contribution of several stains is richer than
that obtained from only one type of yeast.
Moreover, when yeast produced for bakery
applications is used, the final product is also more
neutral. It is also recognized that when non-100%
agave tequila is made, a poorer bouquet is
obtained because since a more defined medium
yields a more defined product.
Organoleptic compounds generated during
fermentation
Fusel oil
As in many other alcoholic fermentation processes, higher alcohols are the most abundant
compounds produced along with ethanol. We
have found (in decreasing order of abundance)
isoamyl alcohol, isobutanol, active isoamyl
alcohol and phenylethanol. It has been
established that production of isoamyl and
isobutyl alcohols begins after the sugar level is
lowered substantially and continues for several
hours after the alcoholic fermentation ends. In
contrast, ethanol production begins in the first
hours of the fermentation and ends with
logarithmic yeast growth (Pinal et al., 1997).

The most important factor influencing the

amount of isoamyl alcohol and isobutanol is the
yeast strain. It was found that a native strain
isolated from tequila must produces a higher
amount of such compounds when compared
with a strain usually employed in bakeries. These
results agree with those reported for Scotch
whisky (Ramsay and Berry, 1984) and beer
(Garca et al., 1994).
The carbon:nitrogen ratio also has a significant
influence on higher alcohol production. In
tequila musts, which contain mainly fructose
(.95%) as a carbon source and an inorganic
nitrogen source (ammonium sulfate), it was
found for both native and bakery yeast strains
that low carbon:nitrogen ratios result in low
amounts of isoamyl alcohol: 19 mg/L in bakery
strains and 30 mg/L for native strains vs 27 and
64 mg/L, respectively, for high carbon:nitrogen
ratios. A similar relationship exists for isobutyl
alcohol production (Figures 1 and 2).
Temperature is a third factor affecting isobutyl
and isoamyl alcohol production with higher
temperatures (e.g. 38 vs 32C) yielding higher
concentrations of those alcohols. On statistical
analysis it was found that in addition to the direct
effects of yeast strain, carbon:nitrogen ratio and
temperature, the interaction of these three
factors also had an impact on higher alcohol
concentration in tequila (Pinal et al., 1997). These
results are consistent with the fact that with high
carbon:nitrogen ratios there is a tendency to use
amino acids as a nitrogen source, which implies
the production of fusel oil as a by-product (by
the Erlich pathway). On the other hand, variables
such as the type of nitrogen source (urea or
ammonium sulfate) or the amount of inoculum
used for fermentation had little or no effect on
the production of higher alcohols. Pareto
diagrams involving all the variables tested are
depicted in Figures 3 and 4.
Methanol
Another characteristic compound present in
tequila is methanol. It is the general idea that

234 M. Cedeo Cruz and J. Alvarez-Jacobs

Figure 1. Higher alcohol production in tequila wort by a bakers yeast strain.

Figure 2. Higher alcohol production in tequila wort by a native yeast strain.

Production of tequila from agave 235

Figure 3. Pareto diagrams for isoamyl alcohol production in tequila.

Figure 4. Pareto diagrams for isobutyl alcohol production in tequila.

methanol is generated through hydrolysis of

methylated pectins present in the agave plant.
Nevertheless, it is also believed that some yeast
strains, natural or inoculated, have pectin methyl
esterases. Some authors describe various
amounts of methanol in musts with the same
composition but fermented with different strains
(Tllez, 1999).

Aldehydes
Along with the production of ethyl acetate, the
oxidation of ethanol also generates acetaldehyde, an intermediate in the production of
acetic acid. It is well known in commercial practice that an oxidation process instead of
fermentation begins after the sugar concen-

236 M. Cedeo Cruz and J. Alvarez-Jacobs

tration declines, thus provoking the increase in
the acetaldehyde level. However, there is no
formal report of such phenomena in tequila, as
it is described in beer (Hammond, 1991).

ethyl acetate, the presence of several other esters

has been described including ethyl and isoamyl
esters. Some of the most important esters found
in silver tequila are listed in Table 1.

Organic acids

Table 1. Most abundant esters found in silver

tequila.1

Small organic acids (up to six carbons) and larger

molecules (fatty acids) are produced during
fermentation. The smaller molecules can be
products of intermediate metabolism of the
normal microbial flora; and their production
depends on the presence of oxygen. The larger
fatty acids are synthesized for membrane
structures during cell growth and can also appear
at the end of the fermentation when lysis takes
place. The presence of octanoic and decanoic
acids in the final product has been described
particularly for tequila.

Ester

Esters

Distilling

Esters are very important compounds in their

particular contribution to flavor and aroma, since
they have the lowest organoleptic threshold
values (Ramsay and Berry, 1984). In particular,
ethyl acetate is the most abundant and important
compound of this family. Ethyl acetate has been
reported to be the second most abundant
compound in tequila after isoamyl alcohol. The
quantity of this compound present in the final
product can vary widely, since it is synthesized
from acetic acid (in form of acetyl-CoA) and
ethanol. Acetic acid can also be produced by
the oxidation of ethanol when the fermentation
has ceased and an oxidative process starts on
the surface of the fermentation tank by
Saccharomyces and many other yeasts such as
Brettanomyces. Therefore, long fermentation
periods (a current practice in the tequila industry)
yield high ethanol oxidation. In addition, in open
fermentation tanks with worts at low pH
containing alcohol, ethanol is also transformed
to acetic acid (itself a precursor of ethyl acetate)
by bacteria of the genera Acetobacter. Besides

Ethyl acetate
Ethyl decanoate
Ethyl lactate
Ethyl octanoate
Ethyl dodecanoate
Ethyl butanoate
Isoamyl acetate
Ethyl propanoate
Ethyl hexanoate
Ethyl hexadecanoate

%
17.77
2.78
2.74
1.92
0.95
0.63
0.58
0.57
0.48
0.48

Estarrn et al., 1999.

Distillation involves the separation and concentration of the alcohol from the fermented wort.
In addition to ethanol and other desirable
secondary products, wort contains solid agave
particles consisting mainly of cellulose and pectin,
and yeast cells in addition to proteins, mineral
salts and some organic acids. Although a great
number of types and degrees of distillation are
possible, the most common systems used in the
tequila industry are pot stills and rectification
columns. The pot still is considered the earliest
form of distilling equipment. It is of the simplest
design, consisting of a kettle to hold the
fermented wort, a steam coil, and a condenser
or a plate heat exchanger. Pot stills are often
made of copper, which fixes, according to
Thorne et al. (1971), malodorous volatile sulfur
compounds produced during fermentation.
Batch distillation using pot stills is carried out in
two steps. First the fermented wort is distilled to
increase the alcohol concentration to 20-30%
by volume, separating out the first fraction called
heads, and the last fraction, called tails.

Production of tequila from agave 237

Composition of these fractions varies depending
on many factors including the yeast strain
employed, wort nutrient composition,
fermentation time and distillation technique; but
in general, heads are rich in low boiling point
compounds such as acetaldehyde, ethyl acetate,
methanol, 1-propanol, 2-propanol, 1-butanol, and
2-methyl propanol, which give a very pleasant
flavor and taste to tequila. Heads are normally
mixed with the wort being distilled. The tails
contain high boiling point components such as
isoamyl alcohol, amyl alcohol, 2-furaldehyde,
acetic acid and ethylactate, giving a strong taste
and flavor to the tequila; and when the
concentration is above 0.5 mg/ml, the final
product becomes unpleasant. This fraction is not
used.
In the second step, the liquid obtained from
the first stage is re-distilled in a similar pot still in
order to obtain a final product that is 110 proof
if it is sold in bulk (reducing transport costs) or
80 proof if it is to be bottled. Some companies
obtain high proof tequila and dilute it with
demineralized water or water purified by reverse
osmosis.
In continuous distillation systems, the
fermented wort enters the feed plate of the
column and flows downward, crossing a series
of trays. Steam is injected from the bottom in a
coil and strips the wort of its volatile components.
Vapors condense higher in the column,
depending on component volatility, allowing
liquids to be drawn off or recycled at the various
plates as appropriate. Sometimes tequila
obtained in this way is mixed with tequila from
pot stills to balance the amount of organoleptic
compounds because in general, tequila obtained
through continuous columns has less aroma and
taste than tequila obtained from pot stills.
The presence of methanol in tequila is still a
subject of discussion because whether methanol
is produced only by a chemical reaction or in
combination with a microbial hydrolysis has not
been satisfactorily demonstrated. The chemical
reaction is demethylation of agave pectin by the
high pH during cooking and the first distillation
steps. The microbial reaction could be the
hydrolysis of agave pectin by the enzyme pectin

methyl esterase produced by some

microorganisms during the fermentation step, but
this has not yet been demonstrated. Preliminary
results favor the first theory, but some research
is still needed on this matter because it is
important to maintain the methanol concentration within the limits established by the official
standard, which is 300 mg methanol per 100 ml
of anhydrous ethyl alcohol.

Effluent disposal
The discharge from pot stills or distillation
columns is known as stillage, slops or vinasse;
and in a typical tequila distillery 7 to 10 liters of
effluent are produced per liter of tequila at 100
proof. Tequila stillage has a biological oxygen
demand (BOD) of 25 to 60 g/L. In addition to
the dissolved salts (mainly potassium, calcium,
and sulfate ions) and the low pH (<3.9) of the
stillage, there are significant disposal or treatment
problems. A general solution to the disposal
problem does not exist because every factory
has its own production process and is located
either in a city or near agave fields. As a result of
the difficulties of treating vinasses and due to their
high concentrations of dissolved matter, a host
of utilization schemes have been proposed.
Some of the methods indicated below are under
investigation and others are in use.
Recycling reduces the volume of waste to be
treated. Stillage can be recirculated, mixing 5 to
10% of the total volume of the waste obtained
with clean water to substitute for the dilution
water used to prepare the initial wort. This can
be carried out for a number of cycles, usually no
more than five, because the concentration of
dissolved salts increases and could affect the
fermentation process. Also, great care must be
taken with the final taste and flavor of the tequila
because some components present in stillage
could affect the organoleptic characteristics of
the final product. Currently, only one tequila
company uses this system.
Direct land application as irrigation water and
fertilizer in agave fields is under careful evaluation

238 M. Cedeo Cruz and J. Alvarez-Jacobs

to determine the optimum loading rates and the
effects on the agave over the long time it takes
to reach maturity. Evaporation or combustion of
stilllage could provide fertilizer or potash, but the
high cost of such a process is a serious limitation
(Sheenan and Greenfield, 1980). The production
of biomass and biochemicals including fodder
yeast is a possibility, but the remaining liquor still
has a high BOD (Quinn and Marchant, 1980).
Stillage may be used as a food supplement for
cattle, but it has an undesirable laxative effect on
animals. Biological, aerobic, or anaerobic
treatment offers a real means of disposal, but
the cost is likely to be as high as the fermentation
costs themselves (Speece, 1983; Maiorella,
1983). Ultimately, tequila vinasses should be
viewed as a raw material rather than a waste,
and a strategy should be devised that maximizes
economic and social benefits and reduces
recovery costs.

providing color and the particular taste. Reactions

among certain tequila compounds yield new
components; and oxidation reactions change
some of the original components in tequila and
those extracted from the wood. As a result of all
of these changes, the concentration of acids,
esters and aldehydes is increased, while the
concentration of fusel oils decreases as tequila
reposes in barrels.
After aging and dilution with demineralized
water (if necessary) the color of the tequila may
be adjusted to the desired value by the addition
of caramel. Alternatively, some companies
blend different batches of tequila to obtain a
standardized final product.
Government inspectors supervise the entire
aging process. Prior to bottling, tequila is filtered
through cellulose filter pads or polypropylene
cartridges. Sometimes afterwards a pretreatment
with charcoal is used to eliminate turbidity.

Maturation

Future developments

Distillation is the final stage of tequila production

if silver or white tequila is the desired product.
For rested or aged tequila, maturation is carried
out in 200 liter white oak casks or in larger wood
tanks. The time legally required is two months
for rested tequila and 12 months for aged tequila.
Tequila is generally matured for longer periods,
depending on the characteristics each company
desires for its particular brand.
As tequila ages in barrels, it is subject to
changes that will determine its final quality.
Thickness and quality of the stave, depth of the
char, temperature and humidity in the barrelling
area, entry proof (40-110 proof), length of
storage and number of cycles for the barrel (in
Mxico barrels may be re-used several times) all
affect the final taste and aroma of the tequila.
Fusel oil content decreases during maturation
owing to the adsorbant nature of the char,
smoothing the final product. Complex wood
constituents are extracted by the tequila,

Research and future developments in the

production of tequila and agave cultivation can
take many directions, but the implementation of
any change must allow quality of the final product
to be maintained and provide substantial
improvement in the process. There are several
key areas where important developments could
take place. Development of new varieties of
agave endowed with resistance to pests or
extremely dry environments, higher inulin
content, low wax content in the leaf cuticle and
superior growth rates would be of benefit.
Mechanization would improve aspects of
cultivation and harvest of agave. In addtition,
optimization of the cooking and fermentation
steps would improve yields and reduce the
amount of waste, while yeast strain selection
could improve ability to ferment musts with high
concentrations of sugars. Finally, low cost
alternatives for waste (bagasse and stillage)
treatment are needed.

Production of tequila from agave 239

Summary
Tequila is a beverage obtained from the
distillation of fermented juice from the agave
plant (Agave tequilana. Weber var. Azul). The
use of agave to produce drinks in Mxico dates
from long ago when certain tribes used it for
religious ceremonies. It was not until the arrival
of the Spaniards, who brought distillation
technique knowledge, that tequila acquired its
present form. The agave plant, which is generally
confused with cacti, is propagated through
traditional methods or by means of plant cell
culture. It is grown for 8 to 10 years before it
can be harvested and sent to the distillery.
The tequila production process comprises
four stages. In the first step, agave is cooked to
hydrolyze the polymers present in the plant,
mainly inulin, into fermentable sugars. In some
factories this step is accomplished using stone
ovens and in others it is carried out in autoclaves.
The second stage is sugar extraction from
cooked agave through milling; and the agave
juice obtained through this step can be mixed
with sugars from other sources, normally sugar
cane, if 100% agave tequila is not desired. The
third and most important stage is fermentation
in which sugars are transformed into ethanol and
other compounds such as esters and organic
acids. These, along with other substances derived
from the cooked agave, give the characteristic
flavor and taste to tequila. It is of great importance
to have a good yeast strain and nutritionally
balanced wort for tequila production, as losses
could be as high as 35% of the total production
if inefficient yeast is used or nutrients do not
appear in the right proportions. In the last stage,
fermented wort is distilled, normally using pot
stills or in some cases rectification columns, to
obtain the final product. At the end of the
distillation process white tequila is obtained.
Maturation in white oak barrels is required for
rested or aged tequila. The minimum maturation
times are 2 and 12 months, respectively, for
rested and aged tequila as required by
government regulations. At every step of the
production process, most companies employ

several quality control analyses in order to

ensure the quality of the product and the
efficiency of the process. Some major producers
of tequila are certified through an ISO-9000
standard. Tequila production is governed by the
official norm NOM-006-SCFI-1993, which must
be followed by all tequila producers to guarantee
a good quality final product.

Acknowledgement
The authors would like to express their gratitude
to Tequila Herradura, S.A. de C.V., for its support
in writing this chapter.

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